1.2 Eligibility and Therapy-Level Training

Therapy-Level Training Versus Practitioner-Level Training

ALTA distinguishes therapy-level preparation (CALT / CALT-C) from lighter practitioner pathways. Therapy-level training prepares you to deliver intensive, diagnostic multisensory structured language intervention—not only classroom-adjacent support. The Competency Exam assumes you have lived that depth: lesson planning with error analysis, progress monitoring, and supervised clinical decision-making. If your transcript shows a short workshop series without practicum and demos, you are not yet in the CALT eligibility lane.

This section walks through the core hour and demonstration requirements, supervision expectations, the master’s versus CALT-C distinction, and the 2–5 year exam window measured from training start. Treat these as planning requirements you verify against your training program’s ALTA-aligned handbook and the current Candidate Handbook—not as informal peer lore.

Core CALT Training Requirements

Instructional hours: minimum 200

Candidates need a minimum of 200 instructional hours in a therapy-level MSLE training program. Instructional hours are the structured teaching/learning contact that builds the knowledge base behind the eight standards: language development, structural linguistics, dyslexia, assessment, MSL methods, law, ethics, and communication. Logging “professional development” that is unrelated to MSLE therapy does not substitute for these hours.

Ask your program for a written breakdown that maps modules to ALTA domains. When you later study for the exam, that map becomes your gap analysis: if only 10 of 200 hours addressed morphology and syllable division, Domain 2 needs disproportionate self-study even if your total hours are complete.

Practicum: minimum 700 hours

Therapy-level candidates complete a minimum of 700 practicum hours. Practicum is supervised clinical work with students—planning, delivering, and adjusting MSLE lessons—not observation alone. Strong practicum records show diversity of learners (age, severity, comorbid profiles) and clear evidence of diagnostic teaching cycles: teach, probe, analyze errors, reteach.

From an exam-readiness perspective, practicum is where assessment interpretation and MSL strategy standards become automatic. Candidates who “banked hours” without reflecting on error patterns often struggle with stems that ask what to do next after a student’s specific decoding or spelling miss.

Demonstration lessons: 10 demos

You must complete 10 demonstration lessons (demos). Demos are observed, evaluated teaching performances that show you can execute therapy-level lessons to standard—not informal peer practice. Keep copies of evaluator feedback. Patterns in demo feedback (for example, weak cumulative review, unclear phoneme-grapheme presentation, or thin progress notes) predict content areas to strengthen before the exam.

Eligibility checklist (therapy-level)

Use this checklist as a living document while you finish training:

• Enrolled in / completed an ALTA-recognized therapy-level MSLE program
• ≥ 200 instructional hours documented
• ≥ 700 practicum hours documented with student work evidence
• 10 demonstration lessons completed and evaluated
• Supervision by a CALT-QI (or program-equivalent QI pathway recognized for your cohort)
• Degree path confirmed: master’s → full CALT or CALT-C pathway without master’s
• Training start date recorded for the 2–5 year exam window
• Records organized for Certifying Committee application (transcripts, logs, evaluations)

CALT-QI Supervision

Supervision under a CALT-QI (Qualified Instructor) is not a rubber stamp on hour totals. QI supervision is how ALTA ensures that practicum and demos meet therapy standards: accurate linguistic content, appropriate lesson structure, ethical practice, and communication with families and schools. Incomplete supervision notes, missing signatures, or demos evaluated by someone outside the approved QI role can delay or block Certifying Committee approval.

What to document with your QI

• Dates and duration of supervised sessions
• Student profiles (de-identified) and instructional goals
• Specific feedback on linguistic accuracy and lesson design
• Evidence that you responded to feedback across subsequent lessons
• Confirmation that demo evaluations meet program/ALTA requirements

If you changed programs or supervisors mid-training, reconcile hour logs early. Gaps discovered at application time are harder to repair than gaps discovered mid-practicum.

Full CALT Versus CALT-C

Full CALT credentials typically require a master’s degree (or higher) in addition to therapy-level MSLE training and successful exam performance. Candidates who complete therapy-level training without a master’s may be eligible for the CALT-C pathway—still therapy-oriented training and exam expectations, but a distinct credential designation reflecting the degree difference.

Why the distinction matters for exam prep

Content on the Competency Exam is therapy-level for both CALT and CALT-C candidates sitting the therapy exam track described in this guide. The degree distinction primarily affects which credential you may claim after you pass and how employers or districts may title your role. Do not assume CALT-C means a lighter exam blueprint. Do confirm on your application which designation you are seeking so your approval letter matches your career plan.

If you are finishing a master’s while completing practicum, timeline the degree conferral against your exam window. Passing the exam without the degree requirements for full CALT may still leave you on the CALT-C designation until degree documentation is complete—verify current ALTA rules when you apply.

The 2–5 Year Window From Training Start

ALTA’s eligibility timing generally allows candidates to sit for the exam within 2 to 5 years from the start of training. That window protects the public by ensuring exam performance reflects relatively recent supervised preparation—not coursework completed a decade earlier without clinical continuity.

Planning implications

• Record your official training start date from the program (not the date you casually began reading Orton-Gillingham blogs).
• If you are early in the window, finish practicum and demos before rushing to schedule; incomplete eligibility wastes the approval year discussed in Section 1.3.
• If you are approaching year five, prioritize documentation cleanup and application now; do not wait for a “perfect” study schedule that pushes you outside the window.
• Interruptions (medical leave, relocation, program transfer) should be discussed with your program director and, if needed, ALTA—do not assume informal extensions.

Connecting Eligibility to Study Strategy

Eligibility milestones and study milestones should move together:

1. During instructional hours, build a domain notebook aligned to the eight standards.
2. During practicum, collect anonymized error examples that illustrate assessment and MSL concepts.
3. After demos, convert QI feedback into a personal weak-domain list.
4. In the final months before application, shift from “learning to teach” to “learning to answer under a 76% cut score,” with Structural Linguistics still leading hour allocation.

Candidates who treat eligibility as paperwork and study as a separate last-month cram often discover that their hour logs are complete while their Domain 2 accuracy is not. Therapy-level training is exam preparation when you reflect on it deliberately; the Competency Exam simply samples whether that reflection happened.